The USDA has announced plans to purchase pork products for distribution to various food nutrition assistance programs. Potential products will be pork loin roasts, hams and pork patties. Purchases will be made under the authority of Section 32 of the Act of August 24, 1935, with the purpose to encourage the continued domestic consumption of these products by diverting them from the normal channels of trade and commerce.

Solicitations will be issued in the near future and will be available electronically through the Web-Based Supply Chain Management system. 

The National Pork Producers Council strongly supports USDA’s pork purchase and worked with USDA to secure the purchase. NPPC will continue working with the agency to identify additional opportunities to support U.S. pork producers during challenging market conditions.

The U.S. pork industry faces a challenging market environment, with losses averaging $30 a pig in 2023 and at times exceeding $40 to $60 per head. NPPC notes that USDA AMS’s Section 32 purchase can provide much-needed support to the hog and wholesale pork markets and secure affordable, nutritious pork products for USDA recipient programs.